The invention relates a freezing adjuvant or additive for foodstuffs based on minced meat.
It is also directed at a process for the preparation of this adjuvant or additive as well as the use of the latter in the preparation of the foodstuffs or food concerned.
It relates more particularly to foodstuffs which are based on marine animal meat and particularly fish; these foodstuffs are known under the collective Japanese term of "KAMABOKO" which covers a whole range of "seafood"; the essential constituent of these foodstuffs of the KAMABOKO type is a raw material denoted by the term, also Japanese, of "SURIMI". This is fish meat from which has been removed the skin, the bones and the guts and which is minced after prolonged washing with water.
The remoteness of fishing grounds and the fact that the production of SURIMI of satisfactory quality requires the use of extremely fresh fish flesh results in this product being manufactured more and more frequently directly on board of factory ships where it is frozen to be preservable until the time of its use for the manufacture, for example, of KAMABOKO.
Now, freezing causes the loss irreversibly of the functional properties of SURIMI and consequently of the final foodstuff of which it is an important constituent. These functional properties comprise the elasticity of the gel formed after cooking of the SURIMI and the degree of whiteness of this SURIMI.
It has been proposed, particularly by French patent Nos. 77 16687 and 79 05977, to combat the drawbacks consequent upon freezing, by incorporating with the SURIMI before freezing, and in practice at the level of chopping the fish flesh, an adjuvant which is in the form of particles constituted by:
a surface-active agent and/or an oil or fat, PA1 a sugar or a sugar-alcohol, PA1 from about 50 to about 99% by weight of a hydrophilic water-soluble cryoprotective agent constituted by a sugar and/or a sugar-alcohol, PA1 from about 0.5 to about 30% by weight of a surface-active agent and/or an oil or fat dispersed in the cryo-protective agent in a finely divided form which will be qualified below as colloidal, PA1 from about 0 to about 20% of phosphates, PA1 the proportion of fragilizing or brittling agent is from about 0.5 to about 10% by weight, PA1 the fragilizing agent is selected from the group comprising native or modified starches, potato starches or celluloses, as well as microcrystalline cellulose, PA1 the plurality of microcavities has a total volume which is such that the apparent density of the constituent particles of the said additive is at the most equal to 95% of the density of the same particles, without microcavities and higher than 50%, preferably higher than 80% of their density, PA1 any narrow particle size fraction of the said additive has a density lower than 0.56, preferably lower than 0.46 and still more preferably lower than 0.42. PA1 the particle size fraction comprised between 500 and 630 microns has a time of total and complete dispersion of the particles lower than 72 seconds, preferably lower than 65 seconds and still more preferably lower than 62 seconds, PA1 the particle size fraction comprised between 850 and 1000 microns has a time of total and complete dispersion of the particles lower than 108 seconds, preferably lower than 98 seconds and still more preferably lower than 92 seconds, PA1 the particle size fraction comprised between 1000 and 1500 microns has a time of total and complete dispersion of the particles lower than 150 seconds, preferably lower than 131 seconds and still more preferably lower than 120 seconds. PA1 either by atomizing a dispersion or a solution containing the sugar and/or the sugar-alcohol, the emulsifiers and/or fats and possibly the phosphates, PA1 or by forming a wet granulation of the constituents of the adjuvant employed in the powdered state, this wet granulation being followed by drying, PA1 or by performing a direct extrusion in the presence of a compressed gas. PA1 on the one hand, of a proportion from about 0.5 to about 10% by weight of at least one of the fragilizing agents of the group comprising native or modified starches, potato starches or celluloses, as well as microcrystalline cellulose, PA1 on the other hand, of a plurality of microcavities whose total volume is such that the apparent density of the constituent particles of the adjuvant is at the most equal to 95% of the density of the same particles without microcavities and higher than 50%, preferably higher than 80% of their density. PA1 either by atomizing a dispersion or solution containing the sugar and/or the sugar-alcohols, the emulsifiers and/or fats and possibly the phosphates, PA1 or by carrying out a wet granulation of the constituents of the adjuvant employed in the powdered state, this wet granulation being followed by drying, PA1 or by performing a direct extrusion in the presence of a compressed gas. PA1 a stainless steel tube: height 4.5 cm, internal diameter 4 cm, PA1 a steel cylinder: diameter 3.9 cm, weight 425 g, by means of which pressure was exerted on the base of about 35 g/cm.sup.2, PA1 an oven with controlled temperature and hygrometry, PA1 a PETRI dish, PA1 a paper band: length 14 cm, width 5 cm, used to facilitate the subsequent unmolding.
the surface-active agent, the oil or the fat being dispersed in the sugar or sugar-alcohol in the colloidal state, the particles concerned being of a particle size less than 0.85 mm when they contain a surface-active agent and possibly an oil or grease, and of a particle size less than 1 mm when they do not contain surface-active agents.
The particles of this known adjuvant may also contain polyphosphates.
The adjuvant concerned is only effective to the extent that it is dispersed homogeneously within the products, particularly minced fish meat, of which the functional properties are to be preserved despite the freeze processing.
And the dispersion of the adjuvant within the mass of minced meat with which it is incorporated at the time of mincing--which takes place at a temperature below 10.degree. C., unpropitious for this dispersion but necessary to avoid any denaturation of the proteins of the fish meat--, must be rapid since the mincing step must be brief both for the reasons which have just been explained with regard to the temperature and for reasons of productivity.
According to the two French patents mentioned above, this object would be achieved by means of the low granulometry of the adjuvants described, said French patents specifying that any adjuvant of particle size greater than the above-indicated limits is to be avoided consequent upon an insufficient aptitude for dispersion and for dissolution.
However, even at the granulometries recommended by the two French patents, not only is this aptitude in no way optimal but, in addition, the particle size concerned result in the adjuvant according to said French patents having a tendency to clumping such that its storage poses very serious problems to the manufacturers, said clumping being manifested by the formation of coarse hard lumps which rapidly become impossible to employ.